Executive Director Jeremy Horton told staff today that they would not be receiving reimbursement checks from the Party for campaign-related expenses that nearly every staffer has been carrying.

The Party is in such shambles that it’s in debt to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, isn’t paying staff, isn’t reimbursing staff like they’re legally required to do (otherwise there are a whole hell of a lot of unreported and ILLEGAL campaign contributions– which the KDP can and should be fined for by both the Kentucky Registry of Election Finance and the Federal Election Commission) and isn’t paying big vendors.

This is an absolute disgrace and potential legal nightmare.

Could this get more ridiculous?

Notice to staff and vendors: Lawyer up. Let me know if you need recommendations.

Having narrowly survived his reelection campaign, Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) was in an expansive mood Thursday morning. Back to work in Washington, he spoke at the annual convention of the Federalist Society, the powerful conservative legal organization. Acknowledging his recent close shave, McConnell elicited some laughs from the friendly crowd by noting that in campaign ads, Democrats had called him the biggest impediment to progress since Antonin Scalia, who also happens to be one of the group’s legendary heroes. “They elected me anyway,” he deadpanned.

Read the rest…

Keep track of the Al Franken - Norm Coleman recount process all on your own. Because we’re kinda bored with it. It’s almost the weekend. [Minneapoloist Star Tribune]

Oh god. Pirates r stealin r oilz! This is all that’s on the CNN. This and the story about the 8-year-old kid who shot his dad 800 times or whatever. [CNN]

We’re so shedding a tear for corrupt Ted Stevens as he bails on the U.S. Senate, finally. [The Hill]

Breast pump bandits strike again! Who knew these things were so expensive? Wow. [TCPalm]

LIZARD PEOPLE ARE TAKING OVER MINNESOTA! [Minnesota Public Radio]

Known Muslim terra-ist president-elect Barack Obama is poised to re-brand America with the foreigns. Experts say so. Once he finishes stealing all of your money and converting your children to the homosex and Islam, he will apparently save our image around the world. [The CNN]

By now you’ve all heard about Steve Beshear’s allegedly fancy energy plan. The mainstream media has all the fluff about it. But when you get into the nuts and bolts of it all, you’re going to want to read Taylor Shelton’s take on it all. His headline: “Beshear energy plan a big letdown”… So. Do it. [Formerly PolSmokers & Taylor Shelton’s GreenKY]

Lookit. Fancy video footage of world leaders refusing to shake Dubya’s hand:

Jim Bunning, once again acting senile:

“I have found Ted Stevens to be the most straightforward, honest senator I have ever worked with,” said Bunning.

And the hilarity with gay airport sex fiend Larry Craig never ends:

Sen. Larry Craig talked about riding in a cab in Alaska to Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport. Craig, the Idaho Republican who will forever be linked with the airport in Minneapolis and did not seek reelection because of the legal problems he encountered there, said of Stevens, “As we round the curb and pull up to exit the cab, I look up, and there is your name. And I said, oh, my, Ted’s got an airport,” said Craig. “That’s neat.”

Oh, the hilarious irony! It hurts!

Why does Greg Stumbo hate Prestonsburg? Why won’t he get all brave and save Prestonsburg from these wild dogs?

Prestonsburg is on alert for a pack of wild dogs. According to the Floyd County Times, the city has issued a warning for residents to watch for a pack of approximately 10 dogs. The dogs were first seen in an elementary school parking lot on Monday. Prestonsburg Mayor Jerry Fannin told the newspaper, “Then they moved on through the town and eventually brought down a deer here in downtown.” The deer was a 150-pound buck.

“Downtown” Prestonsburg. Haha. Gosh. We miss Eastern Kentucky.

Those recommendations include: Adding four investment experts to the investment committees of each of the two pension boards, enabling them to better formulate allocation policies to net better investment returns; requiring all public pension board members to receive continuing education on current investment practices; conducting an immediate study to determine the proper allocation of the systems’ investment portfolios; and reviewing administrative regulations and eliminating those that impair the pension systems’ ability to implement efficient investment portfolios.

CLICK TO ENLARGE

In the photo: Beshear, Finance and Administration Secretary Jonathan Miller, Fake Democratic State Treasurer and Supporter of Hate Todd Hollenbach and other folks from the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce and Kentucky Education Association.

Take a look at that fancy document (investment recommendations) with the green header that the folks in the picture are all looking at by clicking here (PDF Link).

Here’s a quickie refresher on the basic purposes of the agreement: to resolve litigation brought by the states for health care reimbursement (everyone is dying of the tobacco cancer); to impose restrictions on tobacco marketing (no cartoons, no advertising on buses, etc) and advertising methods that were contributing significantly to the youth smoking epidemic; and to reduce (hopefully end) youth smoking and promote public health.

The MSA allows public access to tobacco company documents and required AGs be provided with $50 million for enforcement and implementation of the agreement. So check them out. See the Kentucky tobacco directory by clicking here.

We’re not one to tout anything like this (It’s a slow a news day…) usually, since we’d love nothing more than for all of these companies to disappear entirely, but it’s significant news. Youth smoking rates have declined significantly. 12th graders who reported smoking at least once in the past 30 days has declined from 34.6% in 1999 to 21.6% in 2006. The percentage of 12-17-year-olds who report currently smoking has fallen from 20.9% in 1991 to 10.8% in 2005.

Read the rest of this boring post after the jump…

(more…)

And here’s the C-J story:

Fourteen people were indicted yesterday in Louisville for conspiring to defraud the Veterans Administration out of $1.9 million by fabricating phony claims for disabilities.

The indictment alleges that the ringleaders were Daniel Ryan Parker, 37, a supervisor at Disabled American Veterans in Louisville, and Jeffrey Allan McGill, also 37, who worked at the VA regional office in Louisville and whose job was reviewing claims.

The indictment also alleges that 11 veterans falsely claimed to suffer from bipolar disorder, hearing loss, frostbite, back injuries and other ailments and disabilities.

The veterans allegedly received lump-sum payments for back pay and then kick backed as much as two-thirds of it to Parker and McGill, according to the indictment.

This is the lowest of the low. Lower than anything Robert Felner ever did. Dishonoring and taking advantage of the one segment of society who TRULY deserves to be put on a pedestal and taken care of forever? Scum of the earth.

Meanwhile, hundreds of veterans are homeless and dying in Kentucky thanks to inadequate care and support from these douche nozzles.

Keep checking the C-J story for updates from Andy Wolfson, one of the best reporters on-staff at the Courier-Journal.

And be thankful for David Huber and the rest of his crew in the U.S. Attorney’s office. Here’s hoping the Obama Administration keeps him around.

Meanwhile, Louisville can spend millions and millions on moving an electric substation so an arena may or may not be built (instead of using an already suitable location two blocks away), can spend millions and millions on “Center City,” and can flood untold millions into the joke that has become “4th Street Live!”….

When will Jerry Abramson and the rest of the “leaders” in Kentucky’s largest city get it? When will they realize that it may just be a good idea to make sure local businesses stay in operation and thrive?

And wouldn’t it be great if Greater Louisville Inc, the city’s Abramson-controlled chamber of commerce, actually did anything to support local businesses like Melillo’s?

Haha. Right. Like either of those things would ever happen.

So, do what we do. Go spend money at Melillo’s between now and the end of the year. And then watch downtown Louisville continue to wither and die because not only can no one afford to live there– there’s nothing to do or eat.

Clicky clicky for Melillo’s website. We recommend the stuffed rice balls (DANGEROUS!) and the eggplant. Mmmm.

(Yes, we realize that if a business like Melillo’s can’t weather an economic storm… that there’s probably more than the economy at stake here, but you get the gist.)

Calling in gay on December 10th. Is Day Without A Gay a good idea? Thoughts? [Day Without A Gay & Facebook]

Need something ridiculous and time waste-y to watch for a minute or so? Check this out! [Funny Waste of Time]

Jamie Palumbo clarified to say that he did not vote for Mitch McConnell. According to him, he told several people that he did not like Bruce Lunsford but never said he would vote for McConnell. Jury’s still out on Jane Jensen and Jennifer Miller– who once said that Bruce was trying to assassinate her. [Reports]

We told you how embarrassing and sad this was yesterday. Well, now it’s gone national. [Barefoot & Progressive]

Al Franken is up and down and this is the most terrifying photo of Al Franken ever. The end. Terrifying. [Wonkette]

Don’t you love how Rick knows, well, about zero about why it’s a bad idea to suddenly allow grocery stores to sell wine? Not only does it cheapen the experience, but, uh, it puts all of our local wine stores out of business lickity split. Especially in our fancy economy. (He probably drinks “Zinfandel” or “Franzia”…) [The ‘Ville Voice]

And in other news, a serious recession now appears all but assured. WE ARE ALL DYING OF THE POVERTY AND STARVATION! [Washington Post]

Barack Obama’s use of complete sentences is stirring controversy. His decision to use complete sentences in public carries with it certain risks, since after the last eight years many Americans may find his odd speaking style jarring. It’s so alienating to have a president who speaks English as if it were his native language! [Huffington Post]

Despite what bitter Clinton supporters tell you, Barack Obama isn’t afraid of the ho-mo-sexuals. He’s officially laid out his commitment to the gays in an eight-point homo plan. Calls for: passage of the Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Act, a gender-inclusive Employment Non-Discrimination Act, repeal of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, repeal of the federal Defense of Marriage Act, opposition to any attempt to reintroduce an amendment to the Constitution to ban same-sex marriage, support for inclusive adoption rights, and an expanded war on HIV/AIDS. [365]